"Tomorrow? So soon?" Bibi Dong suddenly felt a pang of reluctance.
She had been with Aotian for sixteen years and, despite knowing his identity as a member of the Dragon Race, was still hopelessly in love with him.
Although Aotian still looked like a young child, in her heart, he had always been tall and magnificent, her steadfast support.
Aotian transformed into his adult appearance, embraced Bibi Dong, and comforted her. "Haven't I told you already? A Child of Destiny will appear on the Douluo Continent. If I don't intervene, the future Spirit Hall will be destroyed by this Child of Destiny."
Bibi Dong snuggled into Aotian's embrace and said, "Then why don't you just find him and kill him? Why do you still need to go to school in such a remote place?"
Aotian caressed the beautiful woman's hair, like stroking a docile kitten, and said:
"I just want to see what this so-called Mandate of Heaven is truly like and what capabilities it possesses."
"Alright, then you must come back to see me often," Bibi Dong said, pouting playfully.
This ruthless, iron-fisted Pope—the very woman who had led her forces to nearly destroy the continent's number one sect, the Clear Sky Sect—would only reveal such a girlish demeanor in front of Aotian.
Aotian lightly kissed her alluring red lips. "Don't worry. I might forget everyone else, but I'll never forget you."
Bibi Dong's pretty face flushed hot with a spreading blush.
"Oh, right, I had someone investigate and found that Yu Xiaogang is also at Nuoding Soul Master Academy," Bibi Dong suddenly said.
"You still remember him?" Aotian glanced at Bibi Dong.
Bibi Dong's heart seized in panic, and she quickly said, "Don't misunderstand! After that incident, I'd already given up on him. I heard that after he was driven out of Spirit Hall, he met a woman named Liu Erlong while traveling the continent. When they were about to get married, Yu Xiaogang suddenly learned that Liu Erlong was his cousin. He abandoned her, despite her deep love for him, and has been hiding in Nuoding City for over a decade."
"I know," Aotian said. "If you don't love someone, you should make it clear face-to-face. You can still part as friends. But he never severed their romantic ties; he just kept avoiding her, making her suffer for more than a decade. Yu Xiaogang has less resolve than a woman."
Bibi Dong nodded. "You're right. I heard he couldn't accept that his lover was his cousin, but on the Douluo Continent, such things aren't considered taboo. Many powerful factions, and even some royal and noble families, aren't too strict about it—as long as they aren't direct siblings—in order to preserve the purity of their Martial Soul's bloodline or noble lineage. That woman, Liu Erlong, is truly pitiable. I heard she searched desperately for Yu Xiaogang across the continent for several years."
Aotian said, "So that means Yu Xiaogang is quite selfish, only considering his own feelings. If he truly loved Liu Erlong, he wouldn't have let her suffer for over a decade. He neither lets go nor dares to love; what kind of man is that?"
"Let's not talk about him anymore. You're going to Nuoding Soul Master Academy; do you have a Martial Soul?" Bibi Dong asked.
She had been with Aotian for so many years but had never seen him release his Martial Soul.
Currently, Soul Beasts can transform into human form after a hundred thousand years of cultivation, and their Martial Soul after transforming is their original Soul Beast's true body.
Although Aotian is a member of the ancient Dragon Race, it should be the same for him, right?
"That's simple," Aotian chuckled, letting go of Bibi Dong and standing before the bed.
The Divine Power within him surged, and a golden divine dragon materialized behind him. The dragon wasn't large, but each of its paws had nine claws. A terrifying pressure emanated from it, making even Bibi Dong's soul tremble.
"Too powerful," Bibi Dong said, speechless, rolling her eyes at Aotian. "If you show up at a Junior Soul Master Academy with a Martial Soul like that, you'll scare all the teachers to death."
"Then I'll make it weaker," Aotian chuckled. At his command, the divine dragon behind him gradually faded until it was ethereal, its immense pressure diminishing to a faint whisper.
Bibi Dong got off the bed and curiously touched the divine dragon behind Aotian. Because it was ethereal, the sensation wasn't real.
"Is this really your Martial Soul?" she asked curiously.
Aotian shook his head. "I'm not human, so I don't have a Martial Soul. This is just something I've conjured with Divine Power."
As he spoke, a Soul Ring appeared around him, followed by two, then three...
Before long, ten Soul Rings encircled him, all of them golden.
Bibi Dong's eyes widened, and she was utterly astonished.
Seeing her expression, Aotian couldn't help but smile faintly.
"These are fake; I can have as many as I want." As he spoke, the number of Soul Rings around Aotian surged—dozens, hundreds... until they became a dense, countless mass.
"Put them away, put them away!" Bibi Dong urged.
The dazzling golden light from the countless Soul Rings was making her head spin.
The two returned to the bedside and sat down.
"Oh, right, I haven't seen Qian Renxue in a while. You should go see her when you have time," Bibi Dong said.
"Don't worry. When it's her birthday, I'll bring her back," Aotian said.
Bringing someone back from Heaven Dou City was, for him, a matter of blinking.
During the years Qian Renxue spent undercover in the Heaven Dou Imperial Family, Aotian would bring her back to celebrate every one of her birthdays.
Bibi Dong suddenly nudged Aotian. "That little girl is fifteen now, you know. The last time you brought her back, the way she looked at you was a little different. Do you think she's fallen for you too? She always used to see you as a big brother."
As she spoke, Bibi Dong's small mouth pouted.
She herself had fallen for Aotian in her youth, so she recognized the signs the moment Qian Renxue showed the slightest inclination.
Aotian found it amusing and tapped his finger on Bibi Dong's lips. "You could hang a bottle from that pout," he teased. "What young woman doesn't dream of love? I'm so handsome, it's not strange for her to like me. Are you jealous?"
"Hmph! Me? Jealous of a little girl?" Bibi Dong snorted. "Time for bed!"
The two changed into their nightclothes and lay down together.
Aotian reverted to his child form, his head comfortably cushioned on Bibi Dong's chest.
Bibi Dong said, "When you're a bit older, we can do 'that'."
Like a kitten nuzzling its owner, Aotian comfortably narrowed his eyes and hummed softly in affirmation.
...
Early morning, a luxurious carriage departed from Wuhun City and headed west.
Aotian could fly and even teleport, but he simply enjoyed riding in a carriage and experiencing human life.
He was alone in the carriage, without any attendants.
At the carriage's speed, it would only take five or six days to reach Nuoding City, a small town on the southwestern frontier of the Heaven Dou Empire.
Aotian knew the plot of the Douluo Continent and had the power to prevent anything unfavorable from happening to Bibi Dong.
But he wanted to see what capabilities the Child of Destiny, Tang San, truly possessed and whether he was truly favored by the Mandate of Heaven.
He recalled that in his previous life, when he had read the book *Douluo Continent*, he hadn't particularly liked Tang San.
So, he decided to seize this opportunity to have an unfair contest with Tang San...
The carriage jolted along, and on the fifth day, it finally arrived at Nuoding City.
Bibi Dong had already sent word ahead. The Hall Master of the Nuoding City Spirit Hall Branch Temple came out personally to greet him, respectfully welcoming Aotian inside.
Because of Bibi Dong's orders, Aotian, who appeared to be only six or seven years old, had already become the de facto leader of the Nuoding City Spirit Hall Branch Temple.
(end of chapter)